Chapter 429: The Spirit Pavilion, Training.

Inside the spirit pavilion, the day had been like any other.

Spirits moved through the castle in their usual routines. Some gathered in the lower halls to cultivate, their bodies still and their diamonds glowing softly as spiritual energy cycled through them. Others prepared for hunts, sharpening their weapons, exchanging information about their children’s progress.

The pavilion was a place of order. Every spirit had a role. Every role had a purpose. The great pavilion spirit at the castle’s heart oversaw it all, its presence woven into the heart of every spirit inside.

Clash!

The sounds of battle erupted outside the gates.

Heads turned. Conversations stopped. The cultivating spirits opened their eyes. The ones preparing for hunts reached for their weapons.

Twenty beasts were charging the outer wall.

Two spirits moved to intercept before anyone needed to give an order. They dropped from the battlements and landed among the beasts like stones falling into shallow water.

The fight lasted less than a minute. The two spirits wove through the pack with no resistance to speak of, their weapons finding purchase in the throats and skulls of the beasts with every attack.

The beasts snapped and clawed, but their attacks met empty air. The spirits were simply faster, stronger, and operating on a level that the beasts couldn’t touch.

Twenty bodies hit the ground, one after the other. The spilled blood of the beasts pooled across the stone in front of the gate.

The two spirits cleaned their weapons. As they turned to return to relay the news, a group of spirits had already reached the gate, staring at the pile of carcasses. Their expressions weren’t satisfied. They were troubled.

"This has never happened before." One of them said, its pale eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Mindless beasts do not come here. They avoid our home. They have always avoided it. Their pathetic instincts tell them this place would only turn into their grave if they do so."

"Yet twenty of them charged our gates." Another added, agreeing with the previous spirit. "Not a single one hesitated. Not a single one tried to flee. Despite being slaughtered."

"Could it be a frenzy? A pack driven mad by something in the forest?"

"Twenty beasts from multiple weak species do not frenzy together. Wolves, boars, felines. They don’t even coexist peacefully, let alone coordinate a charge."

Silence settled over the group.

"We should notify the great pavilion spirit."

"There is no need to trouble the great one with this." A younger spirit spoke. "Twenty mindless beasts, disposed of in seconds. This is beneath the great spirit’s attention. We handled it. It is done."

"It is not done." The first spirit—an older one—replied firmly. "This, combined with the deaths of our young ones in recent days, the ones killed by the lightning wielder. The bodies carried away. The searches that found nothing. And now this. Beasts that should flee from our presence throwing themselves at our gates without fear."

It looked at the others.

"Something is directing them. And whatever it is, it is getting bolder."

The group fell silent once more.

"We report it." The first spirit said. "Let the great one decide whether it is worthy of attention. That is not our judgment to make."

One by one, the others nodded.

A single spirit turned and walked deeper into the castle, toward the heart of the pavilion where the great spirit resided.

***

Moon felt the connection of twenty threads sever.

Instead of being upset, a smile spread across his face. The first part of his plan was in motion.

He drove his sword through the beast in front of him, the blade punching clean through its skull. Weaponmaster amplified the strike, and the creature was dead before its legs buckled.

[You have gained 300 Lives]

Moon pulled the blade free and kept moving.

As someone who could learn any class skill, he had been heavily reliant on his mid-range abilities for most of his fights. Lightning, fire, earth, wind, water. His elements were versatile and devastating, and they had carried him through every major battle so far.

But that reliance had created a gap between his close-range and mid-range capabilities.

Knowing powerful close-range skills like Weaponmaster was valuable. Having the damage bonuses and defensive benefits was a significant advantage. But being able to truly contend with stronger melee fighters at close range, matching their footwork, reading their timing, exploiting openings that lasted fractions of a second, that required something beyond skill bonuses.

It required practice.

So Moon practiced. Every beast he encountered became a sparring partner. He closed the distance instead of casting from afar. He used his sword, his staff, his daggers, cycling between weapons to build familiarity with each one.

He forced himself to fight within arm’s reach, where mistakes were punished instantly and there was no room to rely on ranged spells as a crutch.

It was slower than blasting everything with Thunderclap Raiju. But the improvement was tangible with every kill.

Nearby, his spirit hunted independently. Moon could feel the steady trickle of lives, experience, and spiritual energy flowing back to him through their bond with each kill the spirit made. A passive income that kept his reserves climbing while he focused on his own training.

This continued for hours, until Moon felt his third spiritual acupoint fill to the brim. Moon smiled brightly, deciding to stop his practice for some time.

—

[ Name: Moon ]

[ Race: Human ]

[ Class: Classless]

[ Level: 35 ] [92%]

[ Lives: 223, 459 ] [Super Lives: 0]

[ Strength: 154 ] [ Agility: 214 ] [ Constitution: 176 ] [ Mana: 256 ] (+20 to all stats)

[ Attribute Points: 10]

—

Leveling up was growing more difficult with every level, the number increasing by a significant portion. Moon did not place his attribute points into anything, saving them as another ace card he could use to help his situation.

With so many lives in stock, Moon decided to spend some on evolving one of his skills. His choice was one of the following: Golden Skin, Ignite, Rune Inscription, Beastmaster, Bird Dance, and Airstep.

They were all useful, three of which were epic rank, the rest lower ranking. In the end, Moon decided to evolve Rune Inscription making it his fourth, Second Order Epic Rank skill.